[mompen]

You pause, you stumble, you shudder with fright -- it's that time again -- your
weekly (or daily) weigh-in with your scale!

As you peer down and halfheartedly glimpse at the dial, do you find that it's
not just the numbers that are plummeting or soaring, but your self-esteem too?
Are you continually disappointed when your results are not quite what you hoped,
even after weeks of hard work and sacrifice? If so, take heart -- it turns out
that your scale is not the best way to measure your weight loss success!

That's why, we are here to help you sort out the fat from the
fiction and free yourself from attaching too much importance to the scale (or
any other myth-making machine). After all, the most important measurement is how
you feel both physically and mentally during your healthy living journey.

Nutricise sent this to me! I actually put my scale up day before yesterday and I already feel better about myself. And I did weigh last night just to see if it helps, and it does because my scale was back to normal. So my scale is hybernating for a while. Hopefully it helps me feel better about ME! It has so far. Penny

[mompen]

Is Your Scale Skewed?



(Nutricise) — If you’re growing increasingly frustrated with your not-so-favorite pastime of scale gazing, there might be a couple of facts that you’re missing along the way. Here are some eye-openers to help you keep those fluctuating (or stagnating) scale numbers in perspective:

Bulk-Up on Your Fat v. Muscle Knowledge

It’s probably no surprise that when measuring your body weight, the scale lumps everything together –- bones, muscle, blood and fat. So how can you tell the fat from the muscle? Sorry to say, the scale won’t give you the insider’s edge!

You have probably heard that muscle weighs more than fat, right? But how does this figure into your weight loss plans? Here’s the scoop: Muscle is more dense than fat, which means that a pound of muscle will occupy less space on your body than a pound of fat. Therefore, if you lose a pound of fat and gain a pound of muscle, the scale will not budge.

But the good news is you will be trimmer since this newly gained muscle does not take up as much room as the lost fat. Think about it: A pound of cotton balls (a.k.a. fat) takes up a lot more space than a pound of bricks (a.k.a. muscle). Are you still following?

Scaling Your Progress

If you’ve been using the scale as your sole weight loss measurement tool, consider the following scenario:

In addition decreasing your calorie consumption, you embark on a fitness program, which combines 20 to 30 minutes of aerobic exercise three to four times per week with strength training for two to three days per week. You take the fitness expert mantra to heart and plan to shed about one to two pounds per week, since any more would be unhealthy. Right? Now here’s where the tricky math part comes in:

Religiously adhering to this fitness routine, you lose about 10 pounds of fat in three months. You get ready to dust off the bikini and head for Hawaii to chime in on “Tiny Bubbles” at karaoke night.

But first, you defiantly step on the scale and find, to your dismay, that you’ve only lost 7 pounds.

What’s going on here? What an injustice! You passed on the cheese puffs at the office party two nights ago; you’ve developed such a rapport with your personal trainer that he’s on your Christmas list. Stop panicking! You’ve done well. What you failed to take into consideration –- or shall we say what the scale has failed to take into consideration –- is that you’ve gained 3 pounds of muscle from your strength training.

Staring, mouth agape in disbelief at the numbers, your hopes wane and the sun sets over the sandy white Hawaiian beaches of your mind. You drastically resolve to skip the strength training altogether. Who needs it after all? Good riddance.

Guess what? You’ve been duped by the scale! Instead, of hopping on the scale, why not try on that hot little number of a bikini? Then you’ll most likely be able to tell the difference. Pay closer attention to how much better your clothes fit during the course of those three months. You’ll find that this method beats the scale assessment of weight loss every time.

And the added bonus: developing muscle tissue through strength training not only helps you become stronger and stay more active, but muscle burns more calories all day long –- even while you sit at your office desk! So that 3 pounds of muscle you’ve gained will burn off thousands of calories throughout the year.

The Skinny on Those Scale Numbers

Do you weigh yourself in the morning and then later on in the day after a vigorous sweat-fest on the Treadmill? Are you thrilled by the 2-pound loss? Well, don’t get let the scale numbers have their way with you again just yet because did you know that body weight can fluctuate by several pounds over the course of one day? Not to wipe that gleaming grin from your face, but that weight loss amounts to nothing more than water loss. Eat even a light snack later on, and, wham...the “pounds” will come back. Or at least that’s what your “trusty friend” (the scale) will tell you. Really, you’ve just replaced lost water.

And for you well-intentioned women out there, remember that weight fluctuations also come with hormonal changes during your monthly menstrual cycle. For this reason, scale numbers can be even more deceptive (and disheartening) for women.

So how often should you weigh yourself?

Weighing yourself once or twice a week will give you some indication of your weight loss progress, but the most accurate means for assessing your body fat percentage is by consulting a qualified fitness professional who will use either a skin fold caliper or the circumference measurement technique to sort out the fat from the muscle.

Scale or no scale: How much should you weigh?

Wouldn’t we all love to know the answer to this one? But, unfortunately, it’s not so clear-cut. The answer is different for everyone. Instead of burdening yourself mentally with the Eldorado-like quest for the “perfect body weight” make sure that your health is intact. If you have no conditions that stem from being overweight (heart disease, Type II diabetes, high cholesterol, and so on), take pride your fitness feats and your newfound lust of life. Your body (and mind) will thank you in the long run.